In a unanimous vote that could set up a major legal showdown, Sarasota County commissioners this week moved to block developers from building large apartment complexes next to rural homes and farmland, rejecting applications amid legal uncertainty over a controversial state law.
At the center of the dispute is Florida’s Live Local Act, a 2023 state law that lets developers bypass local zoning rules and public hearings if they include some affordable housing in their plans. In recent months, developers have used the law to propose projects with hundreds, and even thousands, of units in rural and low-density residential districts.
Commissioners said they were reacting to a steady barrage of concerns from residents over the impact of the proposed developments. Among them are Lisa and Denver Miller, who told Suncoast Searchlight they’ve been writing letters to the county about a planned apartment complex near their 15-acre farm in rural east Sarasota County that they believe would upend the character of their neighborhood…